Getting it to bloom

Why won't my Passiflora caerulea bloom? (and how to make it flower)

Also called blue passionflower, common passionflower, passion vine (Passiflora caerulea).

More about passiflora caerulea

About Passiflora caerulea

Passiflora caerulea · also called blue passionflower, common passionflower · flowering

Passiflora caerulea is a fast, tendril-climbing evergreen vine prized for its intricate blue-and-white crowned flowers from summer into autumn. The hardiest passionflower, it survives mild winters outdoors and thrives in a sunny, sheltered spot. Vigorous and self-clinging on trellis, it rewards full sun, free-draining soil and a hard spring prune to keep it tidy.

Plant type: flowering

Watch for — Lush growth but few flowers: Usually too much nitrogen or too little light. Switch to a high-potassium feed and move to a sunnier position.

The reasons passiflora caerulea isn't blooming

Almost every non-blooming passiflora caerulea traces back to one of these, roughly in order of how common they are:

Too little sun — most of these need full sun (or very bright light) to flower well; shade gives leaves, not blooms.
Too much nitrogen feed, driving lush foliage at the expense of flowers (very common with general or lawn feeds).
The plant has not been deadheaded, so it stops flowering once it sets seed.
Irregular watering — drought or waterlogging at the budding stage makes buds abort.
It is still too young or was checked by a transplant and is rebuilding before flowering.

Feeding passiflora caerulea a high-nitrogen general feed and growing it in too little sun — you get a big leafy plant and almost no flowers.

The fix — how to get passiflora caerulea to flower

Maximise sun. Give passiflora caerulea the sunniest spot you have — for most bedding and fruiting plants, more direct light directly means more flowers.
Switch the feed. Move off high-nitrogen feeds and use a higher-potassium "bloom" or tomato-type feed as it comes into flower.
Deadhead regularly. Remove spent flowers often to keep it producing more rather than stopping to set seed.
Water consistently. Keep moisture even through budding and flowering — drought-then-flood swings make buds drop.

Light and feeding do most of the heavy lifting here. Dial in the spot with the light guide for passiflora caerulea and get the feeding right with the passiflora caerulea fertilising schedule — the wrong feed (too much nitrogen) is one of the most common silent reasons a healthy plant makes leaves instead of flowers.

Bloom season and what to expect

Passiflora caerulea flowers across its growing season (mostly summer) and, kept fed and deadheaded, can bloom for many weeks or right up to frost.

Post-bloom care so it flowers again

Deadhead, keep feeding lightly, and many will rebloom; collect seed from the best plants at the end of the season if you want to grow them again.

For everything else this plant needs day to day, see the full passiflora caerulea care brief and its watering schedule — a stressed, badly watered plant rarely has the energy to flower at all.

Passiflora caerulea blooming — frequently asked questions

Why won't my passiflora caerulea flower?

Passiflora caerulea blooms on the season's growth given enough sun, warmth and the right feed — there is no cold or photoperiod trick, just good growing conditions and a bloom-leaning feed. The most common reason it is not happening: Too little sun — most of these need full sun (or very bright light) to flower well; shade gives leaves, not blooms.

How do I make passiflora caerulea bloom?

Give passiflora caerulea the sunniest spot you have — for most bedding and fruiting plants, more direct light directly means more flowers. Move off high-nitrogen feeds and use a higher-potassium "bloom" or tomato-type feed as it comes into flower.

When does passiflora caerulea normally bloom?